GOOD MORNING, UPPER VALLEY!
Sunny, quiet. A line of snow showers came through overnight, so if you do happen to get out there today, it'll be beautiful (though you might want to bundle up): mostly clear skies, moderate winds from the northwest, highs in the mid or upper 20s but wind chills in the teens. With no cloud cover tonight to hold in daytime warmth, we'll be in the single digits by dawn tomorrow."It's a Zen thing to be grooming in the woods at night." With...is that Beethoven?...up loud in the groomer on Saturday night as the Green Woodlands trails emerge out of the dark in front of Ben Moody.Hanover Boloco sold. The longtime S. Main Street burrito fixture changed hands on Thursday, reports Patrick Adrian in the Valley News, when company co-founder John Pepper finalized its sale to former Pine sous chef Shamar Shand and Lyme entrepreneur (and board member at the Hanover Co-op and the Livable Real Estate Cooperative) Conicia “CJ” Jackson. The Hanover spot is one of three remaining Bolocos, and Pepper—who will retain a 25 percent stake that will shrink over time—tells Adrian he expects the two Boston locations won't last past next year. Shand and Jackson talk over their plans.Strafford rallies behind family of fire victim. The Thursday morning house fire that took the life of 77-year-old Corinne Rainville also displaced her daughter, Kerri—the nurse at The Newton School in S. Strafford—and granddaughter, Kallie. As the VN's John Lippman reported over the weekend, "Clothes, money and offers of a place to live quickly poured in for Kerri Rainville" after the fire destroyed the home and all its contents. "This is what our town does so well,” Rainville’s neighbor, Sarah Root, told Lippman. Lippman describes the fire and the outpouring that followed—including a GoFundMe page that's raised $21K of its $30K goal.In Thetford Center, a gun business opens its doors. The small shop, The Gun Room, operates out of the home of owner Chad Martin, and in Sidenote, Li Shen details how it grew out of Martin's lifelong interest in hunting and collecting. Martin, writes Li, "shares the general Vermont attitude toward gun ownership, which is low key and practical. Guns are tools for hunting rather than for show or status." Martin, whose grandfather ran a gun shop in WRJ and then Tunbridge, began collecting sporting rifles himself, and last year decided to apply for a federal dealer's license. Li tours the shop, and talks deer hunting.The ins and outs of mud. This year's early onset is probably due to lack of snowpack, Dartmouth environmental studies prof Shersingh Joseph Tumber-Dávila tells The Dartmouth's Molly Ryan. Basically, less snow (and more rain) allows more water to seep deeper into the ground, worsening the impact of freeze-thaw cycles. Even worse, he says, mud isn't just an inconvenience for drivers: saturated ground in the winter can damage plant roots, since it creates an “anoxic environment” lacking the oxygen roots need—and, Ryan writes, it wreaks havoc for the logging industry, which depends on frozen ground.In Norwich, a three-way Selectboard race. Incumbent Mary Layton, who teaches at Thetford's Open Fields School, faces two challengers this year: Norwich Public Works crew member Chuck Tufankjian, and real estate investor Doug Wilberding. In the VN, Christina Dolan talks to all three about their concerns: from climate resilience to town staffing for Layton—issues raised by the others, as well; practical problem-solving and board transparency for Tufankjian; and "achiev[ing] more and talk[ing] less" for Wilberding. In addition, incumbent Priscilla Vincent is running unopposed for a two-year seat.NH hiker saved in long rescue effort on Mt. Washington. Near noon on Saturday, a 22-year-old man from Portsmouth fell in the Ammonoosuc Ravine and called 911 for help. Rescuers turned to the Cog Railway to help them get to where they could launch a response. The Cog mounted a snow blower on a train to clear the way, which was followed by a second train with search and rescue personnel. Meanwhile, the man had made his way to the Lake in the Clouds Hut. As rescuers set out, they faced 90+ mph winds, an ambient temp of -9, and a wind-chill of -52 F. "These conditions do not allow for exposed skin and require proper gear and experience to survive in," NH Fish & Game writes. When rescuers arrived, the hiker was hypothermic: It took three hours to warm him. Fish & Game blames his poor decision-making and lack of equipment and preparation, and is seeking to charge him.In party-line vote, Sununu gets okay to send NH National Guard troops to Texas. Just a followup on last week's item about the governor's request for $850K to send 15 Guard members to the Texas-Mexico border. On Friday, reports NHPR's Josh Rogers, the Legislative Fiscal Committee voted 6-4 along straight party lines to back Sununu's request. During the debate, Rogers reports, Sununu "repeatedly defended it as necessary to stem the flow of fentanyl and other drugs" into NH. “I am acutely aware of what’s going on at the southern border,” replied Democratic Rep. Peter Leshman, whose son died of a fentanyl overdose. “What kind of difference is this going to make on the thousand of miles of border?”Guilty plea in cyberattack that took down UVM's computer systems in 2020. The attack forced the hospital to send away hundreds of cancer patients and blocked access to electronic medical records, radiology imaging, lab results, and other crucial information for nearly a month. Last Thursday, reports the NYT (gift link), a Ukrainian man, Vyacheslav Igorevich Penchukov, pled guilty in a federal court in Nebraska to charges that he helped lead “a wide-ranging racketeering enterprise and conspiracy” involving two malware schemes and ransomware attacks that included the UVM case. Thanks, CJ!"Looking at life as if it were poetry, and living in that way as well.” Poet, jazz archivist, and nationally known jazz radio host Reuben Jackson died on Friday in Washington, DC after a recent stroke. He was 67. Jackson had strong ties to Vermont, starting as an undergrad (and DJ) at Goddard College, and running through many years hosting VT Public Radio's Friday Night Jazz and a long connection to the state's Young Writers Project. Jackson, who grew up in DC, moved back there in 2018 but kept up his ties to Vermont. VT Public's Mikaela Lefrak and Mitch Wertlieb offer an appreciation.And in place of music today, we'll let Reuben Jackson close things out with a poem about music. And in particular, about Duke Ellington, from his most recent collection, Scattered Clouds. At the link, Jackson reading "For Duke Ellington". And yes, if you've got a particularly good Daybreak memory, he graciously let the newsletter run another of his poems back in March, 2022. Scroll to the bottom here.The Monday Vordle. With a word from Friday's (and, honestly, most days') Daybreak.See you tomorrow.
Written and published by Rob Gurwitt Associate writer: Jonea Gurwitt Poetry editor: Michael Lipson About Rob About Michael
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